Travel with me to divine locations, and read as I share my fascinating experiences!
Day 2:
My alarm started to sing five minutes before seven in the morning. It was the first time that the obnoxious ringing of my alarm did not bother me; all I could think about was the exciting day ahead of me. After lying in my bunk for a couple minutes, I stretched out my arms and opened the shades which were draped over the windows. What a view! There were mountains in the distance, and an orange hue glowed from the base of the rolling hills; the sun was just rising, and everything around me gradually got brighter.
I hopped onto the main floor of the RV, and smiled at the sight of Bullet. We all freshened up and I logged onto my Mac. Time for school!
It was exciting seeing my friends and teachers, and the occasional questions regarding our trip were so fun to answer. As I heard, it was snowing back at home; I cannot believe I missed this winter’s first snow. French was a breeze; my teacher let me leave class a few minutes early, so I could eat my breakfast before second period.
My dad prepared delicious sunny-side-up eggs with some toast. As I ate my eggs outside on the patio, I felt like I was in a movie — a mountainous background behind me, and silence all around. Soon enough, it was time to get back into my zoom classes and stare at a computer screen. In Social Studies I had an in-class writing assessment- in Science I completed a textbook reading-comprehension assignment. Music class: we worked on a marketing project- and Language Arts was a period to complete grammar problems and read the novel, The Pigman.
Yessss! A little break! I got out of the RV and took a deep breath in; inhaling the cool air and taking in the marvelous backdrop. I attached a leash onto Bullet, and we went on a little adventure to a grassy area about two-hundred meters away from our vehicle.
When Bullet and I made our way back, I got back on my laptop and took a math test. I hope I did well. Next, I had to sit through gym, where my teacher talked about leadership and discipline. At last I reached last period, and sang my way through chorus!
It was a relief when I shut down my devices and was done with school for the day. We were going to head out for a little walk.
When I went outside, I saw Bullet barking at some chickens who were wandering around; it was the funniest sight to see — a seemingly vicious German Shepherd trying to befriend clucking chickens! We ventured towards the green rolling hills, and unleashed Bullet. It was a blast playing with him and running all around. A good fifteen minutes was all we needed to lose our breath.
Once we made our way back into the RV, we had some hot chocolate, tea, and snacks, and cozied up inside. After our snack break, we all took warm showers and got ready for a fantastic dinner.
Dinner was magnificent; the perfect way to end our eventful day. Right before heading to sleep, I indulged myself into a good book. As I yawned for the last time that day, I shut my novel, turned off the lights and peacefully travelled into a land of my dreams.
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Day 3:
7:25 was when the bright fiery ball rose from the base of the mountains in Natural Springs, Virginia. I opened my eyes at the sight of the glimmering sunshine trickling its way through the half opened curtains. I wonder what adventure awaits today. As I got out of my bed, I pushed my brother around to wake him up.
“Rise and shine!”
I found my toothbrush and lathered it with some minty toothpaste. Nothing better than some fresh breath. After getting ready for the day, I started up my laptop and opened up my school schedule. It's quite repetitive; same classes everyday at the exact same time, learning almost the same things. Sometimes I wonder if the things I learn in school will actually be used in my outside life. When am I going to need to know what happened during the Middle Ages?
Throughout first and second period my mom was cooking some breakfast, and I ate it during a lecture about centripetal forces. It is interesting how Newton’s Laws of Motion relate to anything and everything moving around in our solar system.
As my break period rolled around, I was not exactly famished just yet, so I decided to be productive and get some homework done. As it usually goes, homework was not the most entertaining time, so I called up my good friends and we all chatted together for the remainder of the period. Back to the online world…
Post break, my classes were not too bad; relatively quick and easy — plus I ate some instant noodles throughout them. After school was when the fun began; I met up with my family back at the rolling hills from the previous day. The grass was a luscious green, and the sun brightened the marvelous view. I could hear another RV pulling into the campgrounds, and I noticed a large black bird gracefully soaring through the sky. The sky was absent of any clouds; the blue tint was vibrant and vivid.
Bullet bolted towards me as soon as he saw me. He was panting and was visibly tired so I left as soon as I came to get him back to the RV and provide him with some cold, clean water. My brother, dad, and mom also arrived back to the RV, and we started to set up a campfire.
Evening time was just rolling in; the sky was dimming to its pink and orange shades, and the warm air was dropping a couple degrees. A light flurry of air blew past me — it was the ideal weather to start up a comfortable bonfire.
The bright orange flames flashed violently in the fire pit, sending warmth all around. The almost rhythmic crackling of the firewood was soothing to listen to, and the fire lit up the darkened area around. We drank some hot tea by the fire and my entire family snuggled up and listened to nature. Hunger was gaining on everyone in my family, so my mom went inside to start fixing up her ‘trademarked’, mouth-watering, jaw-dropping mushroom risotto.
As I got back into the vehicle, I speedily changed into my pajamas and devoured up the heavenly food she made. It was just what I was craving!
My yawn was my signal, and I bundled up into my blankets and easily fell into a deep, relaxing trance.
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Day 4:
Today began later than it should have; my alarm sounded at 6:55, but the snooze button was too tempting to resist. Fast forward forty minutes — I awoke in a panic and hurriedly got dressed. I unlocked my computer and placed it on the table while I swiftly brushed my teeth. Swish swish swish! The water whirled around in my mouth before I spat it out; I finally felt awake and ready for the exhilarating day waiting to happen.
My mom put together some wondrous avocado toast; it was the best blend of avocado, butter, bread, and spices I had ever had. Sitting through Social Studies, I was walloping up a delicious, fancy meal.
Dr. Seuss once said something along the lines of, “the more you know, the more places you go!” and that was what I had to remember throughout this school day. One morning-class I enjoyed was Language Arts because we finished The Pigman and were talking about all the major plot points and themes. Family is important. Kindness matters. You can make a difference.
Inevitably, Language Arts had come to an end, and I had a period to myself. I got up to stretch out and take a look outside. As I stepped out of the vehicle, I saw Bullet sitting out, watching the scenery, as if there was something he sensed in the distance. It is crazy how he can just sit there and look straight ahead for hours on end! The sun was shining down right onto the patio -warming up the area all over. It was pleasant weather; sunny, warm, breezy, and lively. Birds were flying and chickens were clucking, and families far off were outside playing and talking.
When it was time to head back in, my parents got the RV ready for motion. We were starting our next voyage towards the Smoky Mountains! I attended the rest of my school day as we were on the road. To be completely honest, it was not fun looking at a computer screen when there was ample of breath-taking terrain passing us by the second.
Slowly but surely, my school day was completed, and I could finally appreciate the views. We were driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway at a steep incline upward, and as we got gradually higher, I could see more and more down below. The Blue Ridge Mountains were absolutely glorious, and the trees miles away looked like little toys that I could just pick up and play with; the cars and trains alike. The scene was simply majestic; the sunlight hit the base of the mountains in all the right places, and my eyes were glued to the spectacular panorama.
The next stop we made was in the darkness; to fill up gas, take Bullet for a little walk, and pick up some necessary groceries like milk and water. We had about two-and-a-half hours left on our drive, so I took the perfect opportunity to wrap myself in blankets and snuggle up with a good book.
As we pulled into our next KOA campsite in Cherokee, North Carolina, my dad got out and hooked up the vehicle to city water and drainage pipes. We were all pretty hungry, so I helped my mom cook some cheesy pasta. The steam from our four plates swirled around; as if dancing to some classical music. The pasta was hot and ready, and everyone could not wait to eat. We all stuffed ourselves greatly, and the only thing left to do was clean up.
After cleanup, I climbed into bed, grabbed my book, sighed in happiness, smiled because the world needs more of that, read, then shut my eyes and escaped to a far away place.
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Day 5:
I gracefully woke up whenever my body decided it was time — ah the relaxing perks of the weekend! I extended my limbs and grinned because I could smell the divine breakfast being cooked. My brother woke up with me and we both got ready at a similar pace. We exited the vehicle and went outside to say hi to Bullet, and I noticed a tan canopy my parents set up outside. The forecast showed rain later in the day but -at the time- the sky was clear, and the sun was glistening. The food was brought out, and we swallowed up the delicious meal.
We were smack in the middle of the Smoky Mountains, and it was just a sight to see. The mountains towered over us and almost emitted a feeling of comfort because they surrounded the campgrounds and made them seem content and cozy. As we had eaten a heavy breakfast, it was the perfect opportunity to go for a little hike in the mountains.
On our hike, we went towards a river and unleashed Bullet since there was no one else around. It was so calming listening to the current of the river splashing against the stones in the water. The sun was starting to hide behind some greying clouds, but the little light that managed to get through, bounced off the rapid water creating a brighter atmosphere. As we walked along the river, Bullet wanted to pick up a stick so he could run around. He hilariously picked up a branch about seven-feet-long and struggled to run with it. It was entertaining when he turned around because we all had to be careful as to not get ourselves scraped.
We continued walking for about an hour and a half before I decided to come back to the RV and record an audio of me playing my flute. For our virtual winter concert, we were asked to ‘perform’ the pieces titled Deck the Hall and Auld Lang Syne, so I took roughly forty-five minutes to get an almost-flawless take of playing both melodies.
I was pretty hungry after blowing all my air out and food was just what I needed. I ate as the rest of my family met up back at the RV. We all sat around the picnic table under our canopy. The sky was getting darker, but rain was not falling just yet. My brother and I inspected the sight of the mountains that were not so far away, and we spotted a little white dot. I wonder what that is. My brother got some binoculars and scrutinized the unidentifiable object. We came to a conclusion that it was probably just a plastic bag hung upon a tree, but I cannot help but wonder if it was something else like a trapped animal or a robe of some sort.
Drip, drop. Drip, drop. The rain had finally started, and we all got back inside and settled down. One by one we took steamy showers, and -at last- we were all clean and at peace.
My family and I decided to eat some snacks, and Bullet came up to us and stared at us as if we never feed him! It is so hard to resist the puppy face…
After snacks, we settled down for a bit -read a little and napped- until it was time for some dinner! We had flavorsome Kathi Rolls, and boy was I stuffed!
The sound of the rain made my eyes feel heavy, and I unavoidably yawned and laid back in my bed before I seamlessly fell asleep.
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Day 6:
My eyes fluttered open at the sound of my family chattering. Just a few more minutes…. I truly woke up at half past ten, and the rest of my family had already been up for a while. It felt amazing as I changed into new clothes for the day because I had had one of the best night’s rests ever. It was most definitely the soothing sound of rain that sent me into my ‘coma’.
I stepped outside once I was freshened up for the day, and smelled the appetizing breakfast just being cooked. On the menu today was some toast and sunny-side-up eggs along with some buttered bread and tea. As we all sat around the picnic table we talked. I learned that my parents and Bullet had taken a walk to a nearby waterfall in the Smokies while I was asleep, and I took a look at some of the pictures they snapped. The waterfall was simply gorgeous; its crystal clear water appeared thirst-quenching. The sun reflected off of the pictures amazingly, calling for an absolute stunning image.
Once we finished our breakfast, we went for a walk, while my dad had gone for a bike ride. While walking, we could all hear the flowing river; it sounded so tranquilizing and was simply amazing to listen to as we were conversing. We went down to the river, and took some incredible pictures.
Finally, we all met back up at the vehicle and decided it was time for some lunch. As we were cooking, we were also going back and forth from the laundromat to get some laundry done. We ate some Indian lentils with rice and a cauliflower-and-potato sauté; it was extraordinary.
After we had all cleaned up, and were almost uneasy from eating so much, we all went for a short walk -about two miles- before we came back and made a plan to relax. I took out a friendship bracelet I was working on, and continued to make it, as my parents and brother were setting up a campfire.
The fire started off as a little flame dancing about before it roared into a larger-self. It was a stunning bonfire, sending forth warmth and comfort, perfect during the cooler hours of the evening.
My stomach grumbled but I was not quite hungry for a meal yet, so I went inside and heated up some mouth-watering, s’mores-flavored hot chocolate, and topped it off with some marshmallows. As I sipped my hot-cocoa by the fire, I felt like I was in a cozy dream. Warm fire, hot chocolate, fun family, sleeping dog. It was a magical time!
The fire was slowly dying, and we were getting colder, so we all got back inside and started to wind down. Once hunger creeped upon us we had a light dinner! We were all sleepy and exhausted from our fun day, so we went to our respective beds and read a little before being lulled into a deep, restful sleep.
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